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Today marks the second annual #GivingTuesday, a social-media-powered day of philanthropy following the consumerist excess of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Launched by New York's 92nd Street Y, the United Nations Foundation and the Case Foundation, the initiative has been adopted by 10,000 charitable partners worldwide to promote giving in all forms.

"This is the second year of what started in the hope of building a national movement that really was an answer to the consumption focus following Thanksgiving," said Jean Case, CEO of the Case Foundation. "The idea was to bring back the spirit of giving and help others this season."

With myriad #GivingTuesday partners and campaigns on web giving platforms like CrowdWise there is a cause for everyone, and Giving Tuesday encourages even the smallest donation of time or money. It's philanthropy gone social: contributors are encouraged to talk, tweet and tell their friends about giving with the same fervor one might share a Black Friday sale.

As per Case's hopes, Giving Tuesday is well on its way to building an international movement. Last year's Giving Tuesday included 2,500 partners in 50 states, which generated a 56% increase in online giving on December 3rd compared to the same day in 2011.

"This year we have 8,000 partners across the U.S. and at least another 1,500 around the world," said Henry Timms, who cofounded the movement and heads up New York's 92Y, a nonprofit community center in Manhattan.

According to the 2013 Millenial Impact Report, 83% of participants surveyed made a financial gift to an organization; three in four respondents said they like, retweet or share content on social media. As donors get younger and move online, #GivingTuesday is a savvy way to engage the performative online profiles of millennials for good.

"The hashtag is ultimately a sign of community, that people are connected with each other," Timms explained. "People can share stories about what they give, and signify they're part of a bigger community - it's very powerful."

Its organizers have also seen the day become at once more global and more local, as communities worldwide adopt the strategy to promote giving in their locale. Baltimore hopes to raise $5 million in one day, while the United Nations Foundation is running a blood drive in Burundi.

"We're not asking people just for their check, we're also asking for their voice," said Kathy Calvin, President and CEO of the United Nations Foundation, a fund backed by a $1 billion gift from Ted Turner. "Here people take giving, which used to be solitary and private, and make it social."

A team at the United Nations Foundation also came up with the concept of an "UNselfie" - taking a "selfie" while completing a charitable deed, further hoping to engage the Snapchat generation.

"For the Case Foundation, online giving has been a key part of our focus and we’ve been engaged in helping people understand the power of microdonations," said Case. Headed by billionaire Steve Case and his wife Jean, the Case Foundation has also pledged $100,000 in grants and prizes to help promote #GivingTuesday, the latest philanthropic project for the duo who have signed away the majority of their wealth to the Buffett and Gates-backed Giving Pledge.

"Part of the reason we’ve been such big believers in giving platforms is it helps people easily find causes they care about," said Case. "Rather than someone telling you what to give, you can customize your giving for the areas you care about."

Though online giving accounts for just 2.1% of all gifts to large nonprofits according to 2012 studies by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, it is on the up: The American Lung Association reportedly receives nearly 30% of its donations online.

Charitable giving overall increased 3.5% in 2012 to $316 billion, Giving USA noted. This year, the four days following the Nov. 28 Thanksgiving holiday saw spending at stores and websites reach $57.4 billion, according to the National Retail Federation.

"You don’t have to be a billionaire to make a difference - everybody can and should," said Kathy Calvin.

How will you contribute on Giving Tuesday? Tweet @Forbes with #GivingTuesday, or follow me @natrobe.